Plate Tectonics

Early scientist studies the continents an dobserved that South America and Africa fit together like puzzle pieces. Which of the following ideas does this observation support?

• The continental shelves of these two continents are made of the same type of rock.

• The material that makes up the continental shelves is eroded from the continents.

• These continents were joined in the past and have moved apart since that time.

• The tectonic plates beneath these continents are roughly the same age.

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Which of the following models best describes the scientific theory of plate tectonics?

• Building a rocket model and launching it.

• Counting the number of pennies that land heads up after each toss

• Using a basketball to block the light from a lamp on a ping pong ball

• Mixing vinegar and baking soda together in a flask and watching the reaction.

• Placing two pieces of cardboard over a layer of shaving cream and pushing them together.

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Which features are commonly formed at the plate boundaries where continental crust converges with oceanic crust?

• long chains of mid-ocean volcanic islands perpendicular to the coast

• large volcanic mountain ranges parallel to the coast at the center of the continents

• a deep ocean trench and a continental volcanic mountain range near the coast

• an underwater volcanic mountain range and rift valley on the ocean ridge near the

  coast

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What are the processes that have been claimed to explain the movements of Earth’s tectonic plates?

• mantle convection and continental drift

• sea-floor spreading and continental drift

• mantle convection, ridge push and slab pull

• slab pull, and sea floor spreading

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Divergent plates move away from each other. What feature is most likely found at a divergent plate boundary?

• Mountain range

• Mid-Ocean Ridge

• Plateau

• sand bars

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Examining rocks that form on either side of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge provides evidence that supports the theory of plate tectonics. These rocks provide evidence of plate movement. What is happening to the rocks as they get farther and farther from the ridge?

• They are made up of smaller particles.

• They have higher iron content.

• They become increasingly older.

• They become thinner and thinner.

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Which geologic events occur most often at a mid-oceanic ridge plate boundary?

• Magnetic pole reversals and cooling of ocean water

• Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions

• Meteorite impacts and tilting of shorelines

• Water pollution and water heating

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The map below shows dark bands that indicate long mountain ranges on the west coasts of North America and South America. What caused the formation of these mountain ranges?

• deposition of river sediments entering the ocean

• collision of lithospheric tectonic plates

• erosion of continental coastlines by ocean waves

• uneven heating of Earth’s surface

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The Ring of Fire is an area along the edge of the Pacific Ocean with many volcanoes. Which of these geologic areas is where rock is recycled by one tectonic plate sliding underneath another tectonic plate?

• a strike-slip fault

• a subduction zone

• a rift valley

• a divergent boundary

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Earthquakes are experienced in many areas on the planet. What is occurring that results in earthquakes

• two tectonic plates sliding past each other

• two tectonic plates pulling away from each other

• tectonic plates being weathered over time

• tectonic plates melting as they slide into the mantle

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